The Boston Experiment

They say life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.  They also say everything happens for a reason.  I say both quotes are at the very least a little bit full of B.S. and people just say them to make themselves feel better when things don’t go as planned.

One quote that I do believe in is “It is what it is.”  And right now my sprained ankle is better but not 100%.  After trying to throw some miles under my feet a few weeks back, I realized that there was no way that my ankle could stand up to the stress of marathon training at the beginning of the new year.  Thus, I realized it was time to regroup, check my expectations, and make a new plan for Boston 2014.

While researching deep water running, I came across several articles that made claims like “best cross-training because it isn’t really cross-training, it’s running” and read about runners who supposedly didn’t lose any fitness while spending time in the pool instead of on their normal tracks and trails.

Like the quote “everything happens for a reason,” I am a little bit skeptical to say the least.  I think aqua jogging helps, but being the same workout as actually running?  I just can’t believe that. 

However, with an ankle that requires a few more weeks of rehab before it can handle a hard run, I have no other choice but to take a dip in to the pool for my hard training sessions.  I am also logging easy aqua jogging miles to supplement the low mileage that I am actually getting on the road.

And by aqua miles, I am certainly not adding up 25-meter laps.  Instead, time is miles.  So, if I want to run 6 easy miles at an 8:30-mile pace which would normally take 51 minutes, I just do easy aqua jogging for 51 minutes.

To keep this Boston experiment as accurate as possible and to give me an idea of what kind of mileage I am sorta logging, I am adding up my weekly “aqua miles.”  The idea being that as my ankle becomes stronger and we come closer to me (hopefully) running Boston, I will be able to slowly decrease my aqua miles and replace them with real running miles.

If there is any silver lining in my ankle injury and its painfully slow recovery (because people love to believe that there is always a silver lining), it is that the pressure is off for Boston.  I am already looking to the fall’s Marine Corps Marathon as my peak race of the year, and I am just taking what my ankle will give me for Boston.  Hopefully, I will still make it to Boston and hopefully I will be able to appreciate the experience to its fullest since I won’t be stressing about a PR.  However, I still feel strongly that Boston could be a great race for me.   Because – let’s be serious – when I break loose out of my corral on race day, I’m going to run that race like it’s the only one in my life that’s ever mattered.

Boston Experiment Week 1 of 16:  15 Running, 37 Aqua, 52 Total

So, yes, I re-started my training.  It’s a new year, and I decided to regroup and wipe the slate clean.  Plus, December wasn’t all that great anyways.  Other than the fact I couldn’t run much and one of my aqua runs got cut short because of the pool closing (I have to pay more attention to the center's hours), I am happy with the first week.  I felt like I got in some quality training, and I was pleased to feel my ankle get stronger while logging a few miles.

This Week's Beer Choice:  Barrel Trolley I.P.A.